Mohave Daily News: Local

Contributed

BULLHEAD CITY - Summer vacation trips for most children include destinations like Disneyland, campgrounds or grandma's house for a week. They rarely involve travel to a foreign country.

From the time she was 14, summer “vacation” for Patricia Puebla meant working in the hot sun of central California, cutting asparagus and picking tomatoes in a foreign country where few people spoke her native language. She spent her evenings with family and friends at her aunt's home and, occasionally, the family had free time to explore the Sacramento area.

Today, Puebla works as an interpreter for Mohave Mental Health in Bullhead City and is completing course work at Mohave Community College that will lead to a degree in family counseling. Her journey through different cultures, languages and a variety of work environments is a testament to her ability and determination to have a better life.

Puebla first came to the United States under a work permit in 1985, and she continued to return with her parents each summer until 1994, when she decided to make a permanent move to Bullhead City, where she has relatives.

Puebla, now a naturalized citizen of the United States, took a job in housekeeping and advanced to become a housekeeping supervisor at a Laughlin casino. It wasn't enough for her, however, and she became frustrated at work.

She said she knew there was a better and more fulfilling life out there, and she wanted to be a role model for her two daughters, Mara, now 11, and Kenya, now 5. Both are attending school in Bullhead City and are fluent in English and Spanish.

Puebla enrolled in MCC's English as a Second Language program. Once she was fluent in English, she earned her GED and landed a job as an interpreter with Mohave Mental Health last year.

Puebla is currently the only Spanish/English-speaking case worker at Mohave Mental Health, handling 58 cases. Next in her sights is to work toward her bachelor's degree in psychology so she can become a counselor.

“I knew when I worked at the casino that it was important I learned to speak English,” Puebla said. “I could get a better job and have a better future in the United States. Now life has improved dramatically for me, (husband) Oscar and the girls. We now own a home and are looking to buy a new one.”

Mohave Mental Health called Miriam Yesayan, MCC's ESL coordinator, and asked if there were any Spanish-speaking students who could speak English well enough to work as an interpreter.

“I was very happy to recommend Patricia because she was obviously Spanish speaking, but she was also doing very well in her English classes,” Yesayan said. “I saw in Patricia a tremendous amount of ambition. If she sets a goal, she has the motivation to go after that goal until it is attained. I jumped at the opportunity to recommend her.”

Puebla had set her sights initially on becoming an office manager or a medical assistant in a doctor's office. Therefore, she had taken classes in psychology, office management and medical terminology, as well as law and ethics.

She has decided through her experiences and cases at Mohave Mental Health that she wants to become more involved in the lives of the clients.

“I enjoy working more directly with clients; the job is very satisfying,” Puebla said. “These people know they can talk with me and it makes them feel better. I like helping these people with the issues they have, and I want to become a counselor so I can have a more direct influence.”

Puebla enrolled in regular classes at MCC, seeking her associate's degree in psychology and plans to pursue the “2-plus-2” program with Northern Arizona University. That program will allow her to earn her associate's degree at MCC, then transfer into NAU to pursue her bachelor's degree in psychology, a necessity for the counseling position.

“If anyone I know is determined to pursue and complete her dream, it is Patricia,” Yesayan said. “She is determined to get her degree, to become a counselor and to set a great example for her daughters. She is a great example of what the native of another country can accomplish in the United States if he or she sets her mind to it.”

Puebla said she won't be satisfied until she gets her bachelor's degree, but she is already proud of what she has been able to accomplish, and she praised the ESL program for helping her attain her goals.

“My life has improved so much since I started learning English at MCC,” Puebla said. “My whole life is better here. I have found a better job than I would have found in Mexico (and) the schools are much better here in the U.S., which I found out and which my daughters are finding out for themselves.

“I am really very proud of the ESL program at Mohave Community College because it has changed and improved my entire world.”